eNL Operations Director, Rebecca Mawdsley, has spent the last 5 years as a member of the organising committee for the Birmingham Young Professional of the Year Awards, taking on the role of Chair for the 2012 event. The awards took place on the 17th May with over 880 guests attending This glittering awards ceremony, was hosted by Sir Ranulph Fiennes alongside the 2012 Chair of Judges Chief Fire Officer, Vij Randeniya.

The overall 2012 Winner is Aktar Islam, chef director at Lasan restaurant and Lasan eatery, where he has carved out a reputation as one of the UK’s most-exciting young chefs. Winner of BYPY’s entrepreneurial category, he succeeds AECOM’s Hilary Allen as overall winner, adding the accolades to an impressive list of awards that includes The F Word and Great British Menu.

The HR, Recruitment and Training category was won by Emily Ford-Halliday, associate director for design courses at Birmingham Metropolitan College while Amy Kiernan, head of marketing and communications at family-owned company The Sargeant Partnership, won the communications category.

Lloyds Banking Group’s regional managing director David Richardson was crowned Inspiring Leader in recognition of his dedication to developing the next generation of city talent while Anisa Haghdadi won the inaugural Aspiring Talent award; a category introduced to recognise inspirational young people who are not yet in the workplace but already making their mark on the city.

Commenting on the results, Rebecca said: “We had a fantastic evening and congratulations must go to all our category winners and especially to Aktar Islam, our BYPY 2012.

“Aktar has already achieved a great deal in his career, establishing two successful restaurants while playing a key role building the city’s reputation as an international foodie capital. The judges were particularly impressed by his entrepreneurial talent, determination and the contribution his success has already made to the city. We’re looking forward to working with him as an ambassador for the city’s young business talent over the next 12 months.”